1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an automated parking facility with automated guided vehicles for moving passenger vehicles on a floor of a parking facility and vertically reciprocating conveyors for moving the automated guided vehicles and/or the passenger vehicles between floors of the parking facility.
2. Description of the Related Art
Municpalities throughout the world continue to grow in size and population density, and the number of vehicles in a municipality varies directly with the population size and density. Most municipalities have zoning ordinances that control the number of parking spaces required for all new construction so that real estate developers provide sufficient parking for residents, tenants employees and customers of new real estate developments. The required number of parking spaces generally is a function of the number of residential units and the square footage of office and retail space.
Suburban real estate developers generally can provide a sufficient number of parking spaces with grade level lots in proximity to the real estate development. Parking garages generally are not required for suburban real estate development and those parking garages that may be required generally do not present complicated design difficulties.
Real estate developments in urban areas are much more likely to require parking garages, and parking garages in urban areas are much more likely to present design problems. For example, profitability of an urban real estate development is a function of the ratio between the size of the lot and the amount of development that can be placed on that lot. Tall buildings are more likely to be profitable, but also require more parking. A parking garage can be built adjacent to the residential, retail or office building. However, the parking garage adjacent to the new construction limits the amount of the site that can be used for developing the residential, retail or office space. As a result, parking garages often are built below the building that will be served by the parking garage. Above grade parking garages are less costly than below grade parking garages. However, above grade parking garages often are aesthetically unattractive and detract from the architectural appearance of the new building. Below grade parking garages are aesthetically more attractive, but can be cost prohibitive, particularly in coastal areas where flooding is a concern.
Municipal ordinances also are likely to control the size of each parking space and the width of parking aisles to ensure that parkers have sufficient room to maneuver into and out of parking spaces and throughout the parking garage.
Real estate developers can request zoning variances in situations where the zoning ordinance is too burdensome for a particular site. However, the real estate developer must demonstrate that an acceptable alternate can be provided to the specific parking requirements established by the zoning ordinance.
Devices have been available for decades to permit two or more cars to be arranged vertically in a single parking space. The typical device of this type has a platform with sufficient structural rigidity to support a vehicle thereon. Piston/cylinder arrangements or pulleys with chains or cables are provided to raise or lower the parking platform with or without the vehicle thereon. The typical parking platform has a sloped entrance ramp that the vehicle negotiates to enter onto the parking platform. An employee of the parking facility then actuates the lift mechanism to elevate the parking platform with the vehicle thereon. Another vehicle then can be driven into the space below the parking platform. Many such parking devices have more than one parking platform and hence permit more than two vehicles to be parked in a vertical array. Examples of parking devices of this type are shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,772,172 and in U.S. Pat. No. 7,597,521.
Parking lots that rely upon vehicle lift devices require considerable room for the vehicle owner and/or the parking lot operator to maneuver vehicles from the entrance of the facility to the appropriate vehicle lift device. Most parking lots and parking garages that rely upon this technology do not have automated systems for locating the vehicle or for organizing the stacked arrangement of vehicles. As a result, a significant amount of maneuvering is required to park or retrieve a vehicle. These parking systems tend to be very labor intensive and create the potential for minor accidents as the vehicles are being maneuvered by employees of the parking lot.
Recent work by the assignee of the subject invention has related to the use of automated guided vehicles (AGVs) to move vehicles throughout a parking facility. AGVs are highly maneuverable and precisely controllable. Therefore, an AGV is well-suited for moving vehicles in the tightly confined spaces of a parking facility. AGVs typically would be used in combination with parking trays. More particularly, each parking tray may have a generally planar supporting platform on which the vehicle can be parked and legs extend down from the supporting platform to keep the supporting platform and the vehicle thereon in a slightly elevated position. The AGV is dimensioned to move between the legs and under the supporting platform. Elevating mechanisms on the AGV then can be activated to lift the tray and the depending legs slightly from the floor of the parking facility. The AGV then will maneuver the parking tray and the vehicle thereon to an appropriate parking space in the facility. The AGV then may leave the parked car and the tray and move to another location in the parking facility for moving another tray and another vehicle either into or out of the parking facility. The combination of AGVs and parking trays typically will be used with vertical reciprocating conveyors (VRCs) to permit vehicles to be moved between floors of a parking garage. Systems of this type avoid the need to have the parker drive to and from the parking space. Rather, the parker merely deposits the car on a tray at and ingress bay and retrieves the car later from a tray that has been moved to an egress bay. Parking systems of this type also reduce the labor costs associated with having workers move cars through a parking facility and into the parking spot and then having workers retrieve the cars from the designated parking spot. The recent work in connection with parking facilities that use AGVs, parking trays and VRCs can achieve operational efficiencies and some space efficiencies in view of the ability of AGVs to maneuver precisely in confined spaces.
The VRCs of a parking facility move through openings in the horizontal support structure that defines the ceiling of one level of a parking facility and the floor of the vertically adjacent level of the parking facility. Vehicle drivers, passengers and employees of the parking facility generally will not be present on the various parking levels of the facility. As a result, the openings through which the VRCs move do not have the complex and costly safety doors on each floor of the facility comparable to those used with a passenger elevator. Additionally, the openings through which the VRCs move generally are not surrounded by walls.
As noted above, the AGVs are precisely controllable and normally can be relied upon to move toward the opening that accommodates a VRC only when the platform of the VRC is present at the opening to accommodate the AGV thereon. However, software can malfunction in any industry. A software malfunction could result in an AGV with a vehicle thereon moving into the opening for a VRC even though the VRC platform is not present to receive the AGV and the passenger vehicle thereon. In this situation, the AGV and the passenger vehicle could fall several stories through the vertically aligned openings, thereby causing catastrophic damage to the vehicle and to the parking facility itself. Employees or customers also could be injured by the debris generated by an AGV and passenger vehicle falling several stories through the vertically aligned openings that are intended to accommodate the VRC.
As noted above, the automated nature of the above-described parking facility results in most parking levels being devoid of human beings most of the time. However, a parking lot could require human intervention at certain times, such as to complete repairs in the parking facility or in the event of an emergency, such as a fire or a power failure. An emergency worker who is unfamiliar with the layout of the parking facility could be required to move through the parking facility under conditions that offer limited visibility, due to darkness or smoke. An emergency worker, therefore, easily could fall into one of the openings that is intended to accommodate a VRC. A fall of several stories could be fatal. Doors that are comparable to the doors used for a passenger elevator would be prohibitively expensive and require costly maintenance. A low barrier could impede movement of an AGV, but would not protect an emergency worker during conditions of low visibility. A high gate could protect a worker, but creates storage problems when the gate is open. A gate that is strong enough to guide a worker away from the VRC opening may not be strong enough to stop an AGV. A gate that is strong enough to stop an AGV and that is high enough to protect a worker could be very heavy and difficult to move
In view of the above, it is an object of the invention to provide a parking facility that prevents an AGV or a worker from falling into the opening of the parking facility that is intended to accommodate the VRC.
It is another object of the invention to provide a safety barrier that does not require excessive space in the parking facility.
A further object of the invention is to provide a safety barrier that is lightweight and inexpensive.